Reviews by zeledonia:

First review under the new quarter-point system. Fitting that it's a saison. Thanks to match1112 for another nice BIF beer. Tasted 8 January 2013.

Pours a hazy medium golden yellow. Hint of butterscotch color. Two plus fingers of big foamy white head, good retention and a fuzz of lacing up the inside of the glass. And a column of bubbles, just visible at the bottom of the glass. Very nice.

Taste is tough to get a handle on (see mouthfeel below). What I can taste doesn't really impress me. Comes across like a pale ale with a light Belgian twist, and the faintest hint of flowers. Mostly I get light grains that don't impart a ton of flavor, followed by a middling bitter zap. Some spice and that juicy Belgian yeast flavor are the only saison elements I can find.

Mouthfeel is a zinger, and not in a good way. It's markedly overcarbonated, so much so that it stings my lips a little, then jumps up and gives my tongue and the roof of my mouth a bit of a burn. Like drinking seltzer water, so carbonated that I can barely taste it. Yikes. This is going to give me some serious burps.

I like a lot of things about this beer. But the extreme carbonation brings it way down, affecting both the feel and my ability to taste the beer. If not for that, my rating might be nearly a full point higher.

More User Reviews:

It was just a matter of time. At some point in a brewer's life, chamomile will prove to be too interesting of a choice to ignore for too long. Its a fascinating set of aromas, tastes and textures to complement nearly any Belgian ale of lighter hues.

De Lis pours with a light eruption in the glass that nearly greets the top of the glass, even with the most modest pour. As it settles, it takes on the typical pale straw color with a milky haze. Its billowing head soon settles into a blanket of cotton-white foam with broken rings in retention and its lace.

Highly floral and perfumy- the scent of chamomile really takes on flowery proportions. But its bouquet doesn't stop there- complementing notes of coriander, fresh ground white pepper and a tinge of rosemary or thyme give an herbal complement to the botanical character. All that lays on a soft wheaty-sweet scent resting slightly behind.

And its that sweetness that greets the taste buds first. Its yeasty sweetness rounds into a light cookie dough base flavor. And that's perfect from which the herb, fruit and spice flavors will spring. Fresh-cut grass, lemon and apple peels bridge the gap from fruit to spice. That's where a light papaya (not quite banana), clove and rosemary-type herbal-ness rises to balance the fruit. Yet its finish is playfully acidic- much like a gentler sparkling white wine.

After the initial sip, I find the ale as creamy as it is zesty as the carbonation keeps the beer light and fluffy. But as the sweetness and bubbles dissipate, the grassy finish offers up a mild astringency to accompany the earthen hop bitterness. Also a soft spank of iron attempts to crispen the oil-like effects that chamomile lays on the surfaces of the mouth.

De Lis is a complicated beer that is easy to dismiss simply because of its friendly and delicate set of aromas, flavors and textures. But don't let it fool you- there's a lot of complexity packed into this recipe.

A- This beer pours a slight hazy light apricot color body with a wall of microbubbles gliding to the 1/2 glass of antique white foam that last a good bit. The beer gets hazier with the second pour.

S- The white plastic phenol aroma has some clove qualities to it and a circus peanut ester finish that turns into hair perm chemical aroma as it warms.

T- The dry camomile flower flavor ends in a dry pucker with some plastic taste and circus peanut esters and banana esters really growing as the beer opens up. There is also a black pepper spice that comes through in the finish aswell.

M- The light mouthfeel is dry and has a bit of an astringent bite in the finish that is enhanced by the tight little fizz.

O- The big yeast character and off flavors are very unappealing together and it covers up much of the flower character. The fizz grows enhancing the off flavors and yeast esters making to difficult to finish the bottle.

Just an exceptional saison. Poured from a bottle picked up from my local shop. Bright, floral, but not overly robust. Slight hop finish. The chamomile is fresh, yet light, doesn't overpower. A very stellar farmhouse. This one will be a frequent guest in my fridge.